The Devil With The Face of an Angel | Irondad, pepperony

Chapter 44

"Friday, how's Tony?" Pepper asked as soon as she got home from work. She forbade herself to think about him and Peter, but as they say, you will not command your heart. And the more she tried to suppress her thoughts about them, the more they reached out to her, and she thought it would make her head dizzy. From day to day she felt a bigger desire to return to them; but firstly, it seemed silly for her to suddenly appear on the doorstep of their door, and secondly... well, she was still not sure about Mary. She knew she should act before Mary caught the two men back in her webs, but an inner voice urged her not to make hasty decisions. After all, Mary had a bigger right to Tony and Peter than she did. And Pepper couldn't bear to go home and find that Mary had replaced her place, this time for good. That would hurt her and get her on her knees even more.

"I'll tell you. He's lonely and sad like a puppy that someone just threw on the street," a completely different voice replied, which was so different from the robotic one. Pepper winced when she found a thin, blonde-haired woman standing with her back to her in the living room. But then she turned and Pepper gasped. "Hello, Darling. Surprised?"

"Natasha!" Pepper exhaled, and in the next second the women fell around their necks. They hugged each other tightly, and it looked as if they would never want to let the other go again.

Pepper was always grateful to Natasha. She had helped them so many times, rescuing Tony, watching over Peter, and supporting her. When she had to disappear from the country, Pepper was really sad. She was her best friend, and when she was thinking about that, she had no one but her to whom she could confide. She spent all her time with Tony and Peter. So Natasha was really a gift and she was glad to meet her.

Nat, on the other hand, was grateful to Pepper too. Before she started working for S.H.I.E.L.D., she had another... well, another job. And before the Avengers became her family, Pepper welcomed her to hers. Natasha was actually also a member of the Stark family and owed for it to this woman.

"I wouldn't recognize you at all!" Pepper said as they pulled away, looking in surprise at her white hair cut into a mikado. "But it suits you, even though I like you more like a redhead."

Natasha smirked and ran her hand through her short hair. "It's a change. But I'm getting used to it."

"What are you doing here, anyway? Did Steve and the others come back too?" Pepper asked and they sat down on the couch together. She was really happy that Natasha was here again, and it was nice to be able to talk to someone and not deal with her situation.

"Unfortunately not, I've only been with Steve for a while, and then I decided to go back to Russia," she replied, sighing. "He's stubborn, he doesn't want to back down and call Tony, even though everyone can see how much it destroys him. I don't know how to help him."

"Did you come here to persuade Tony? I'm afraid he's like Steve in this," Pepper said, smiling weakly. Natasha took her hand.

"No, Pepper. To be honest, I came to see you."

"Why?" she asked in surprise, then frowned suspiciously. "And how did you even find me? How do you know that-" Then she stopped and swallowed as she slowly began to realize what this was about. "You know it."

"Yes, I know," she admitted immediately. She wasn't in the habit of walking around a hot mess. "Oh, Pepper, what were you thinking?"

And Pepper told her everything. Everything that happened, what bothered her, and how she constantly struggled with herself and the desire to return to her loved ones. She told her about Mary, about her assumptions, about how Peter and Tony were hiding the most important things from her. Natasha listened to her all that time and didn't interrupt her, so it was easier for Pepper to talk, and it was really a relief to tell everything to another person. Tears welled in her eyes at the end of the story, and Natasha hugged her.

"Pepper, you dummy," she shook her head with a sigh and stroked her back. "How could you ever think that Tony and Peter would trade you for Mary from day to day? Did they ever give you a reason to think you were just a patch? That you're just filling in the empty space and you're nothing more than a short-term replacement for Mary? Remember how many things Tony gave up for you, just so you could be safe and he could be with you. Remember how Peter began to call you his mother completely naturally. You're more important to them than Mary was, and you mean so much more to them than she ever did. All three of you are worried and I don't want to look at it."

"But Nat, you don't understand," Pepper said softly, wiping her wet cheeks. "I don't want to stand between them and Mary. Maybe they'll give her a chance. And I want to avoid even more pain. If you heard her... I'm afraid that if I came back, she would do all sorts of tricks and deliberations. She could hurt them in some way."

"That's exactly what she wants you to do, Pepper. She wants you to be afraid of her and get out of her way, so she would have a free hand. I know Tony gave you space and time to be sure of your relationship again and to be really sure of your return. On the one hand, I understand you, women like Mary are really unpredictable. But you must not give up. Come on. Pepper Stark never gives up," Natasha winked at her, and Pepper rolled her eyes.

"Pepper Potts," she corrected her quickly, but her heart pounded as Nat said her name and Tony's last name.

"It's only a matter of time," Natasha waved it off. Then she smiled encouragingly. "Come on. You don't have to think about anything. I know you love them and you need them, and they love and need you as well. We'll come up with something about Mary. And Tony would never let you be in danger."

•••

Natasha is back, who's happy?